Effect of solidification conditions on the solidification mode in austenitic stainless steels

The effect of the solidification conditions on the solidification mode in the composition range in which the primary austenitic and ferritic modes compete is studied by varying the welding parameters in gas tungsten arc (GTA) welding and by comparing the results with those obtained from other laboratory experiments. A good agreement holds if the effect of the composition is described by the ratio Cr_eq/Ni_eq (Cr_eq = pct Cr + 1.37 × pct Mo + 1.5 × pct Si + 2 × pct Nb + 3 × pct Ti and Ni_eq = pct Ni + 0.31 × pct Mn + 22 × pct C + 14.2 × pct N + pct Cu) and the effect of the solidification conditions by the growth rate. The critical value of the ratio Cr_eq/Ni_eq corresponding to the transition from primary austenitic to ferritic solidification increases from 1.43 to 1.55 with increasing growth rate. The upper limit is valid in GTA welding at high welding speeds, while the lower limit corresponds to the practical conditions which exist in ingot and shaped casting. The validity and applicability of this solidification model are discussed.